[nq:1]My point being, not everybody, [nq:1]Sometimes Blank Posts as a, [nq:1]They are

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Sandy in OK:

[nq:1]Sometimes Blank Posts as a silent salute is much better tribute to an animal than criticism, or comments on perhaps ... or angry property owners who are sick of their wildlife being picked off.. Nothing else needs to be said imo.[/nq]
And yet you felt a need to say it? Sandy in OK

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sighthounds & siberians:

[nq:1]My point being, not everybody on the CBB (in fact only a minority) was lecturing Paul about outdoor cats. Most, ... I felt the need to point that out, since Paul chose to only mention the ones who were being "mean."[/nq]
I got the feeling that if someone here was the first to be critical of his decision to let his cat be outdoors part of the time, he'd have gone over to CBB and complained about how mean we were being. I can't decide whether his motivation in posting is to get attention or to get a big reaction (such as a newsgroup or board 'war').
[nq:1]I also have opinions on it, but try not to second guess or beat people up when they've just lost ... pissy about waiting for the new professionally built screen room to be finished (hopefully in the next day or so)[/nq]
That sounds like a fantastic compromise. We had a screened-in side porch that mostly belonged to our indoor cats, but it was turned into a kennel when we started doing greyhound rescue. Alas, all they have now is their own room (they have the run of the house too).

Mustang Sally

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Suja:

[nq:1]They are indoor cats with a completely screened in outdoor area where they can enjoy the sun, catch bugs and ... pissy about waiting for the new professionally built screen room to be finished (hopefully in the next day or so)[/nq]
I remember an English gardener who put up an outdoor living area for her indoor cat. It was sort of a wire mesh tunnel, running along the length of her garden. She incorporated it into the garden by having vines grow on top, have it pass through and behind tall shrubs, etc. and there were several points where the cat could look out and watch the goings on in the garden. In part of the footage, the cat was in there, watching birds feed in the flowers. He just seemed mesmerized.
Suja

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Judith Althouse:

Paul,
I am so very sorry about Photon. Words escape me. I sound like a damn fool I know..but when I first saw your post I thought Muttley was the cause of Photon's demise..Please forgive me Paul and Muttley..I am so sorry for your loss...You picked a lovely spot to put photon to rest.
BE FREE Photon..Love, Judy
Be Free..Judy

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Mary Healey:

[nq:1]I think an enclosed area for cats is a great idea. I wonder why more people don't do something like that.[/nq]
It's more expensive than opening the door. Or leaving it shut.
[nq:1]I don't own cats, nor have I ever, but I always feel kind of sorry for the indoor cats; it just seems like such a boring life.[/nq]
Rhiannon begs to differ. She was born in a barn, but hasn't willingly set her little toesies out of doors since she was weaned. She thinks grass is icky, and dirt is simply disgusting.
[nq:1]I have often wondered why cat owners couldn't put a leash on the cat and just take them outside in the grass for a awhile.[/nq]
I've done that with those cats that seemed to enjoy the whole 'fresh air and sunshine' routine. But it's a calculated risk, not so much from the physical safety point of view, but because I have no idea what parasites and diseases the neighbor cats may have shed in my yard.

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Judith Althouse:

Paul,
I am sorry you were criticized for having a cat outside. I have a 15 year old cat. She is outside as we speak looking at me thru the sliding glass window. We went from AC yesterday to heater today...She would only come in if the AC was off. I love her, her medical care is up to date. She is spayed, well fed and loved. To those that think a cat must be kept inside right on..My cat likes to be outside and that is ok with me..I understand the risks of having an outside cat. Speaking of risks my Vet told me moving back to Fl would take a few years off my animals lives..My dogs are 13 and 14.
If it hadn't been for you rescuing her and her littermate she may have had no life at all..
I am also glad you had Muttley to snuggle up to..Take care..Judy
Be Free..Judy

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Sionnach:

[nq:1].Somehow I felt the need to point that out, since Paul chose to only mention the ones who were being "mean."[/nq]
Given how he presents the members of this group to the AOL people, I found it rather surprising he'd choose to post about it here at all... (and like another poster, while I sympathize with his loss, I really could have done without the graphic description of the injuries).
[nq:1]The fact is, outdoor cats have a fairly short lifespan. Of 5 cats I had >who lived an indoor/outdoor life, only one made it to a reasonably old age and died from reason other than accident[/nq]
My S.O. and I between us (two different households, both with cats since childhood, both of us in our mid-40s) have had somewhere in the vicinity of
35 outdoor-only and indoor/outdoor cats over the years.

ALL of my neutered indoor/outdoor cats have led good long lives; the youngest I've lost one was at age 11, to kidney cancer, the oldest (my first Siamese) lived to be 20, and died of sheer old age. My current indoor/outdoor cats are 6 and 11.
The outdoor-only tomcats we had when I was a kid tended to live shorter lives, as do the semi-feral, unneutered outdoor-only barn cats that my S.O. inherited from his mother. However, the barn cat population is pretty badly inbred, and she didn't give them any care other than feeding them in the years before she died.
But the matriarch of the barn cat clan - who recieved better care when she was young, was tame, and lived near the house, greeting everyone as they came in and out - lived to be 14 (she died just this past weekend). And the two indoor-outdoor cats he inherited are both around 10.

As you say, it's a calculated risk, but depending on where you live, whether you neuter and give medical care, whether you keep them in at night**, etc. the odds for indoor/oudoor cats are NOT as horrible as the "indoor-only" fanatics claim.
**One of mine sometimes refuses to come in, or opens the door and lets himself out... however, all he ever does, AFAICT, is sit around in the backyard.

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sighthounds & siberians:

[nq:1]As you say, it's a calculated risk, but depending on where you live, whether you neuter and give medical care, whether you keep them in at night**, etc. the odds for indoor/oudoor cats are NOT as horrible as the "indoor-only" fanatics claim.[/nq]
That "depending on where you live" part is a big factor. I live in on a major road in a small town in a rural county. I haven't seen many dead cats on our road, actually - - far more on other roads - - but there are a lot of strays around that I wouldn't want interacting with my cats. There are also stray dogs, and I don't want them interacting with my cats, either. And since I have sighthounds and Siberian Huskies, I wouldn't want my cats in the dogs' fenced yard. Although they're all fine with the cats inside, prey drive might very well kick in before the dog realizes that the prey is one of our cats. It's an individual decision, but there is risk assumed in letting cats outside.

Mustang Sally

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Janet B:

[nq:1]I have often wondered why cat owners couldn't put a leash on the cat and just take them outside in the grass for a awhile.[/nq]
Unless you train a leash fairly young, the results can be problematic.
[nq:1]I don't know, I am not a cat person, never have been, but it seems that they should be able ... and a safe environment. Putting an indoor cat outside in a screened in protective environment once in awhile sounds good.[/nq]
If I lived somewhere with a steady climate (like San Diego), I think I would have one in a heartbeat. I've still considered it, but DH hasn't been won over. They cats have so many beds, cat shelves in windows, etc, dedicated to them, that I'm not sure they'd care about a screened room! The house definitely has a lot of "for the cats" design!

Janet Boss
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

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RE: R.I.P. Photon, Nov 1999 - October 23, 2006 page 3

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